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Time, Tense and Aspect: An Introduction
This overview, rather than aiming at completeness, tries to serve as a rough guideline to
its threefold topic, introducing the concepts of Time, Tense and Aspect for beginners. In
the act, it offers a brief overview of the most basic time forms of the English language.
Time:
There are many ways of referring to time. Examples include: NOW, (BACK) THEN, SINCE,
FOR, AFTER, X [units of time] AGO...
Spans of time may point in either direction; here, however, we quite simply distinguish
between two basic concepts:

Time of Speaking (ts): This is always 'now', i.e., the moment at which we actually
say something.

Time of Reference (tR): This is the time we are talking about, i.e., it can be any
time at all.
Consider:
I got my first pair of glasses when I was eight years old.
tR = 21 years ago
Now I am twenty-nine years old, and I have contact lenses. tR = ts
Something that happened twenty-one years ago clearly belongs to the past, and the
possession of a pair of contact lenses in the second sentence equally clearly belongs
to an extended present. That is, at ts, it is a habitual fact.
Tense:
The English language possesses three basic Tenses, one of them a compound tense,
the others inflectional. Thus, we may reduce the number to two, Tense being defined as
an inflectional category. The (three) Tenses are:

Past
[V -ed] or irregular forms

Present
[V -s] in 3rd person singular, else simply [V]

( Future
[will] + [V] )
The basic gist of the relationship between tS and tR determines the basic Tense, in a
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quite logical and straightforward way. The example above illustrates this. If we want to
talk about the past, we choose a past tense. The same applies for present and future,
mutatis mutandis. There are, however, interesting complexities –the main reason for our
use of the indeterminate article above. We shall not dwell on this, however, and move
on to the basics of Aspect now.
Aspect:
There are three basic Aspects in the English language; each can be combined with a
Tense. Also, various Tense-Aspect-Aspect combinations are possible, which means we
can end up with complex compound tenses such as the Future Perfect Continuous (I will
have been doing). The rules to make such constructions, which concern us here,
however, are much easier than the rules of use.
The Aspects are, in the hierarchical order they take in complex compound time forms:

Simple
[V+ -X]

Perfect
[HAVE] + [V -en]1

Continuous [BE] + [V -ing]
Thus, the Simple time forms are not modified in any way that exceeds the rules stated
in the 'Tense' section of this paper, while Continuous and Perfect are constructed using
an auxiliary and an impersonal verb form -one of the two participle forms of English.
Combining Tense and Aspect:
The basic formula for combining Tense and Aspect is:
Tense --> Aspect (-->Aspect),
in a hierarchical order. That is, each element in the formula determines the precise form
of the one that follows.
1st Person Singular + Present + Continuous + [DO] =
I am doing...
3rd Person Plural + Future + Perfect + Continuous + [DO]=
We will have been doing...
1 [V -en] means the past participle. As many others, I use the -en ending as a cipher for the simple reason that it is the
most common ending of irregular past participles. The regular ending, of course, is -ed, and there are many irregular
'-en -forms' that do not end in -en.
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To spell out the second, more complex, example: The Tense determines the primary
auxiliary verb: Future with [WILL]. The primary Aspect determines the secondary auxiliary
verb [HAVE] and the form of the following verb [-en]. That verb happens to be [BE], used
as the secondary Aspect's auxiliary (Continuous). In turn, 'been' demands that the next
verb should be the present participle, i.e., [-ing]: it operates the Continuous Aspect.
It is important to notice both that the hierarchy cannot be violated, and that the Simple
Aspect rules out all combinations. Thus, we could almost consider the Perfect +
Continuous combination as a second-order Aspect; it certainly is easier to teach it that
way. On the other hand, the basic mechanism also works for the passive, which is
practically ruled out by complex compound tenses.
The Most Important Tenses in English:
Here follows a short and rather basic overview of the most important tenses in English. I
exclude all time forms that combine a Tense with more than one Aspect. Signal words
given are purely orientational -they rather express the “feel” of the relevant tense than
any kind of rule.
1) Present + Simple
I
you
he/she/it
V
I
V-s
he/she/it
we
you
V-ed
we
you
they
 Use for:

2) Past + Simple
V

extended present

present habits

'eternal truths'
Signal words: NOWADAYS, ALWAYS, OFTEN, ...
you
they
 Use for:

Actions that belong to the past (Bygones)
■


V-ed
Those actions have to be finished at tR
Narratives
Signal words: YESTERDAY, LAST [week...], IN THOSE
DAYS, X [years...] AGO, ...
“I like swimming.“
“Yesterday, I went to see my grandparents.”
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As the Will-Future is, by definition, a compound form, we shall deal with it farther down.
While it is indeed a combination of Future and the Simple Aspect, thus a functional
Simple Tense, structurally it is patently not ‘simple’.
3) Present + Perfect
4) Past + Perfect
I
I
have
you
he/she/it
he/she/it
has
[V-en]
we
you
[V-en]
we
you
have
had
they
they
•
had
you
•
Use for:
o
Use for:
o Actions that, at a past tR, had only just
Actions that have only just finished –
nothing new has yet begun.
finished –nothing new had yet begun.
o Actions that have not taken place up
o Actions that had not taken place up to
to tS but might afterwards.
o
•
Repeated
actions
over
tR but might afterwards.
a
long
o
Repeated
actions
over
a
long
period of time that presumably will
period of time that might have
be repeated.
been,
Signal words: YET, UP TO NOW, SINCE, JUST...
or
were,
repeated
or
interrupted afterwards.
o To set the scene in a narrative in the
“I haven’t been to Paris yet.”
“We have just arrived.”
past: if tR1 is in the past, and tR2 is
“I have told you thousands of times...”
farther back in time, use the past
perfect.
•
Signal words: YET, UP TO THEN [or THAT DAY],
SINCE, JUST...
“She had only just finished when...”
“We had never been to London, so...”
“Why hadn’t he told her?”
The Perfective Aspect is ‘stronger’ than the Continuous one: If we combine the two, the
latter follows the former. As we shall see, the Perfective Aspect is also the one that is
harder to explain and grasp without taking recourse to a learner’s native tongue, which
might have very different rules (German) –or no Perfect (Irish). Thus, while for the present
purpose it is convenient to arrange the Aspects hierarchically, it can be preferable to
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change their sequence when teaching, as is indeed the usual practice.
5) Present + Continuous
6) Past + Continuous
I
am
I
was
you
are
you
were
he/she/it
is
he/she/it
was
[V-ing]
[V-ing]
we
we
you
you
are
they
they
•
were
•
Use for:
o
Use for:
o Temporary actions that were going on
Temporary actions that are taking
place at the moment of speaking.
at a past tR.
o Plans and intentions concerning the
o
immediate future.
o
To
give
interrupted by a fast, unconnected
temporary
meanings
to
event.
stative verbs.
o
•
Signal
o To give temporary meanings to
Temporary, limited routines.
words:
RIGHT
Longer past activities that were
NOW,
stative verbs, if your tR is in the past.
AT
THE
o
MOMENT, FOR NOW, ...
Temporary, limited routines of the
past.
“Are you listening?”
•
Signal words: AT THAT MOMENT, BACK THEN,
“I’m watching the football match tonight.”
WHILE, [...] WHEN [something happened], ...
“She’s being unpleasant today –she must have a “She wasn’t listening.”
headache.”
“I was watching the match when the phone rang.”
“I’m writing my thesis at the moment.”
“He was having a headache –such a sad excuse!”
“Back then, I was looking after my niece at the
weekends.”
Above, we mentioned the concept of ‘stative’ verbs. Now is the moment to say a few
words about what those are. Stative verbs, as opposed to ‘dynamic’ ones, are verbs that
do not imply actions or change but rather states and characteristics. So, for example,
“My dog has sharp teeth.”
 Possession/characteristic feature.
“Trujillo lies on a hill.”
 Unchanging position: Towns do not tend to walk around.
Dynamic verbs are used to express actions, events, processes –there is change
happening, something is going on.
“I’m running down the hill.”
 Movement
“The dog bit her.”
 Action
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Many verbs can be used in both ways. Thus, “The dog bites” would make reference to a
habit –a characteristic behaviour, basically stative. Similarly, if you use HOLD in the sense
of hold an office, you are talking about something very similar to possession or a personal
characteristic or attribute. If you use it in the sense of hold a pen, you are describing an
action.
In the middle, there are verbs of stance –temporary state or position. Trujillo will not move
from its hill, but if my dog is lying in his basket, he may move at any moment.
The distinction is relevant to our choice of Aspect: Stative verb meanings exclude the
Continuous Aspect, unless it be in the sense of a temporary or put-on feature. Dynamic
verbs often suggest the Continuous –“I’m holding a pen in my hand,” not “I hold a pen in
my hand.” Stance verbs are even clearer in their preferences: “The dog lies in his basket”
is simply not correct.2
Our discussion of the English Tenses in the narrower sense established above concludes
here; we shall now move on to the Future. “De futuris rebus dicere est dificile,” as the
Romans said. But, is it?
Future Time
English possesses a whole range of ways of referring to the future, but no inflected Future
Tense. Thus, the two most frequently-used ways of talking about the future are
constructions with the modal auxiliary WILL and the Present Simple. Let us first have a
look at the latter:
Morning
Mon
School
Tue
School
Wed
School
Thu
School
Afternoon
Football
English
Football
English
Eating Out
Going Out
Going Out
Evening
TV
Fri
School
Sat
Sun
Fly to
London
2
It can be correct if it occurs in a subordinate clause, though: “I like those peaceful moments when I listen to oldschool blues records in my room, the dog lies in his basket and I read a book while outside, the rain is falling.”
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What we have here is a schedule, a timetable that is well-established NOW. Thus, on
Monday I know that I have my English class tomorrow, and another one on Thursday.
Those are scheduled events that have been decided on some time back. Often, I might
also use the Present Continuous instead. I might prefer it in certain circumstances for
stylistic reasons (the –ing forms in the table are likely candidates) or to express a sense of
immediacy either of the event or of the decision.
The example of our flight to London illustrates the difference between Present Simple for
references to the future on the one hand and will-future on the other: Flying to London is a
one-off action of ours, a special event. At the same time, the plane does the flight three
times a day, adhering to a habitual schedule. Thus, I’d say:
“On Sunday, I’ll fly to London. The plane leaves at half-past nine.”
Remember it is still Monday, and Sunday is still far off. Again, to stress immediacy, we
might have used the Present Continuous. But if we had used the Continuous for the time
the plane leaves, we would imply a disruption of the schedule:
“The plane should have left at nine, but now it’s leaving at half-past.”
The Will-Future
WILL is a modal verb, not a primary auxiliary verb like HAVE or BE with their inflected
forms and their uses for non-auxiliary meanings. WILL does not change, and unlike the
two mentioned above, it cannot be preceded by another auxiliary or modal. As a modal, it
denotes intention and prediction; in some contexts, WOULD can be considered its past
tense form –but not in all.3
The intention/prediction meanings are also important when we use WILL as an auxiliary
for the future. But let us start with formal aspects:
In the more complex variations of the will-future, we
I
you
modify the Infinitive and use combined infinitives
he/she/it
such as the Continuous Infinitive “be + [-ing]”; the
will
we
you
[Inf]
hierarchy remarked upon above cannot be violated,
and
additional
auxiliaries
have
to
follow
the
sequence HAVEBE. This also holds in the case of
they
3
That is, whenever a backshift is necessary (reported speech…) we use WOULD as the ‘past tense’ form of WILL.
Otherwise, WOULD is semi-independent. Thus, we can understand WOULD as the ‘past subjunctive’ rather than
the ‘past tense’ form of WILL.
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the Passive Infinitive “be + [-en]” –a marker of voice, not time form.
As we said above, the modal ‘prediction’ meaning is always present when we talk about
the future, and the use of the will-future, no less its derivatives, stresses this. The ancient
meaning of WILL, as a stronger variant of WANT, is also present: We often use the willfuture to make offers, i.e. willingness to do something for someone else.
Thus, the form is used for the following purposes:
 ‘Pure’ future –indicating a high-probability prediction, based on information we
possess now, concerning future time:

“The calculating power of computers will go on growing exponentially in the
foreseeable future.”  Active

“In the future, knowing more than one foreign language will be considered a
part of literacy.”  Passive
 Offer and Request –again, these point forward to the future, on logical reasons.
Keep in mind that the use of WILL for a request is very direct and can be
considered impolite. A subjunctive WOULD is the less direct alternative:

“We’re out of milk, you say? Don’t worry, I’ll get some.”  Offer

“Will you close the door?”  Request/Demand
•
“Would you close the door?”  Less direct Request
 Present Prediction –this term refers to conclusions drawn from information we have
now and referring to now:

“She’s been travelling for ten hours –she’ll be tired.”
Complex future time forms add an Aspect to the Future ‘Tense.’ The results, such as the
Future Perfect Continuous (They will have been working on that cathedral for 200 years
next autumn.) are analogous to the relevant Aspect forms in other Tenses. We shall not go
into details here. There are, however, two tendencies that have to be remarked upon:
•
Complex future time forms are quite likely to indicate Present Prediction rather than
Future Time –if we are talking about tomorrow, it is often easy to avoid the linguistic
complications of using more than one Aspect at a time, but expressing high
probability conclusions in a Perfect situation suggests a modal WILL.
•
The tendency to avoid the Passive Voice increases considerably with the
complexity of the time form. There simply is no Future Perfect Continuous Passive.
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The Going-To Future
I
am
The Going-to Future can be considered a
you
are
special variant of the use of the Present
he/she/it
is
Continuous for the future. It indicates real or
going to [Inf]
we
virtual intention (‘virtual’ meaning that we treat
something inanimate as if it had intentions) and
you
are
they
plans, and has a strong connotation of
imminence, i.e. proximity in time. It is often
used in the Past Tense (X was/were going to...) to indicate failed intentions. Consider:
•
I’m going to see the Iron Maiden concert in Mérida on July 11.
•
I was going to call earlier, but I’ve been so busy I just couldn’t.
The Going-to Future is compatible with the Continuous Aspect but not with the Perfect.
Generally, the event we are referring to when using the Going-to Future tends to be a bit
farther along the line, remote, than when we use the Present Perfect.
Final Words
Like most things humans have been busy creating over a very long time, language is
rather intuitive than logical. Everything above is approximate, a rough guideline inspired by
a bit of modern linguistics. We have discussed the main uses of the main time forms, but
we have skipped things like the backshift in reported speech, and this outline is far from
complete. It should be useful, though, and the schematic tables should help clarify points
like the Verb Group’s structure and the common elements of all time forms, as well as the
basic points of use.